Analysts Say a Nuclear Iran Is Years Away  —  Western nuclear analysts said yesterday that Tehran lacked the skills, materials and equipment to make good on its immediate nuclear ambitions, even as a senior Iranian official said Iran would defy international pressure and rapidly expand its ability to enrich uranium for fuel.

Prosecutor Corrects Filing About Former Aide to Cheney  —  WASHINGTON, April 12 — The prosecutor in the C.I.A. leak case has corrected an assertion he made in a court filing last week about actions taken by I. Lewis Libby Jr., the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney …

UPDATE: White House Seeks Apology, 'Post' Stands By Story  —  NEW YORK The White House on Wednesday hit back at The Washington Post for its front-page story this morning which suggested President Bush in 2003 cited the discovery of mobile biological weapons labs in Iraq as "weapons of mass destruction" …

The Euston Manifesto  —  It started with some like-minded progressives meeting in a London pub.  Disenchanted with what they saw as the wrong-headed thinking of the anti-war movement, they began to talk of a new left movement.  By Norman Geras and Nick Cohen

At Trial, Flight 93 Myth Finally Becomes Reality  —  It began with a muted series of thumps from a sharp knife or maybe clenched fists.  The sounds were muffled but unmistakable, one body blow after another, ending with a squishy thud.  —  "No, no, no, no, no. No," came the high-pitched voice …

Rumsfeld Rebuked By Retired Generals  —  Ex-Iraq Commander Calls for Resignation  —  The retired commander of key forces in Iraq called yesterday for Donald H. Rumsfeld to step down, joining several other former top military commanders who have harshly criticized the defense secretary's authoritarian style …

WHERE IS BILAL HUSSEIN?  —  Where is Bilal Hussein—and who is he working for?  —  A year ago, I blogged about a controversial, Pulitzer Prize-winning photo taken by an unidentified Associated Press stringer in Iraq.  More background from the blogosphere here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Migrants rush to Arizona border anticipating passage of guest-worker plan  —  NOGALES, Mexico (AP) - At a shelter overflowing with migrants airing their blistered feet, Francisco Ramirez nursed muscles sore from trekking through the Arizona desert - a trip that failed when his wife did not have the strength to go on.

The Minority Maker  —  The clever GOP strategy for defeat in November.  —  If Republicans lose control of Congress in November, they might want to look back at last Thursday as the day it was lost.  That's when the big spenders among House Republicans blew up a deal between the leadership …

Democrats Face Uphill Battle to Retake House  —  An 18-month recruitment drive by the Democrats has produced nearly a dozen strong candidates with the potential for unseating House Republicans, but probably not enough to take back control of the House absent a massive anti-incumbent wave this fall, according to House political experts.

Here is the Democratic message on Iran  —  George Bush has decided to use Iran as a foil to help his sagging poll numbers and to help Republicans in the fall congressional elections.  I'm going to discuss why this is true, and what the Dems should do about it.  —  Iran is ten years away from developing nukes.

Congressman accused of using staff to baby-sit  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Two former staff members of U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Michigan, say the longtime Detroit congressman made them baby-sit his children, run errands and work on political campaigns while they were on his congressional payroll.

Bush had good reason to believe there were WMD in Iraq  —  Bush may have been misled by the information he had, but he did not lie.  —  SALT LAKE CITY - Among the allegations leveled at President Bush by his critics, probably the most serious is that he took the United States to war in Iraq on false pretenses.

Troops in Support Of the War  —  Earlier this year there was a town hall meeting on the Iraq war, sponsored by Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.), with the participation of such antiwar organizations as CodePink and MoveOn.org.  The event also featured Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), a former Marine who had become an outspoken critic of the war.

Coalition Launches 'Operation Mountain Lion' in Afghanistan  —  WASHINGTON, April 12, 2006 - Coalition forces, in cooperation with the Afghan National Army, began "Operation Mountain Lion" yesterday to establish security, deter the re-emergence of terrorism, and enhance the sovereignty of Afghanistan, military officials reported today.

The s-word  —  Golfer Tiger Woods has been criticised for saying he played like 'a spaz'.  Can using the word ever be right?  —  Two years ago I was involved in a linguistic incident at work.  I called a disabled colleague a spaz after hearing he'd spilt coffee over yet another expensive bit of computer kit.